This research will examine the psychological, social and emotional consequences of childlessness among older women. First, a case study approach will be used to collect interview data from a sample of 40 respondents. Then a survey of 1200 women between the ages of 60 and 70, stratified on marital status (either currently married and living with spouse or widowed) and number of children (either childless or having borne and raised at least one child who is still living) will be undertaken. Information will be collected from equal numbers of subject within each of the four categories (i.e., married childless, married with children, widowed childless, widowed with children) through self-administered mail questionnaires. Respondents will be selected through the following sampling procedures: 1) widows will be identified through a random sampling of Los Angeles County death records for the last five years; 2) women currently married and living with spouse will be identified through snowballin procedures, whereby the widows specify names of female neighbors who are 60 to 70 years of age and currently married. The four subsamples will be compared on seven clusters of variables: 1) social-psychological well-being, composed of measures dealing with morale, loneliness, social isolation, depression and overall happiness; 2) fertility related variables such as desired family size, as contrasted with actual family size, and satisfaction with existing family size; 3) expectations regarding outcomes of parity and actual outcomes; 4) degree of social interaction and satisfaction with social interaction; and 5) background and demographic variables including financial status and health. The general hypothesis to be tested is that there is not a direct relationship between parity and well-being; instead the relationship is moderated by social-psychological variables such as a) social contact, b) congruence between fertility desires and outcomes, and c) the relationship between expectations regarding parity and the actual outcomes of one's parity.